What should parents do to prevent early puberty in children?

Puberty - Photo 1.

Sports help children avoid early puberty - Photo: CNA

What is precocious puberty?

Precocious puberty is a condition in which a child shows signs of puberty before the average age of a normal person. Nowadays, girls often start puberty as early as 8 years old, while boys start puberty as early as 9-10 years old.

Early puberty can have many harmful effects on children, both physically, psychologically, and socially. Here are the main effects:

1. Physical harm

Early height growth stops: Early puberty causes growth cartilage to close earlier than normal, causing children to stop growing taller as adults, leading to a shorter stature than peers.

Uneven development: Children may experience an imbalance between physical and mental development, making it difficult to adapt to the new body.

2. Psychological effects

Increased stress and low self-esteem: Children who go through puberty early often feel anxious or low self-esteem when their bodies develop differently from their friends. They may be teased, leading to psychological pressure.

Vulnerability: Early hormonal changes can make children more susceptible to emotional problems such as depression, anxiety, or rebelliousness.

3. Social impacts

Difficulty fitting in: Precocious teens may feel out of place because they are different from their peers, especially if they are not yet mentally and emotionally mature enough.

Risk of abuse: A child's early physical development can increase the risk of sexual abuse or harassment, especially if the child is not aware of how to protect himself.

4. Increased long-term health risks

Hormone-related diseases: Early puberty increases the risk of diseases such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in women, or cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes due to hormonal changes.

Metabolic disorders: Early puberty can cause metabolic problems, increasing the risk of overweight and obesity in children.

Sports is the best way

Exercise can help prevent early puberty. More importantly, it is about building a healthy lifestyle around regular exercise.

Maintain a healthy weight: Exercise helps control weight. Obesity or being overweight is considered one of the factors that lead to early puberty, because excess fat can stimulate the production of sex hormones.

What should parents do to prevent early puberty in children? - Photo 3.

A healthy diet like an athlete also helps children prevent early puberty - Photo: XHN

Hormone regulation: Regular exercise can help the body regulate hormones, reducing the risk of hormonal imbalance - one of the causes of early puberty.

Improve overall health: Sports help children stay healthy, improve their immune system and reduce the risk of hormone-related diseases.

However, overtraining or over-stressing (as in the case of professional athletes at a young age) can have the opposite effect, affecting a child's natural development.

In addition, early puberty is also influenced by many other factors such as genetics, diet (foods containing high levels of growth hormones or processed foods), and living environment (exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals).

Exercise has a positive impact in preventing early puberty, but it needs to be combined with a healthy diet, weight control, avoiding exposure to harmful chemicals, and a safe living environment for optimal results.